For the first half of the week the Australian Dollar posted notable gains against several of its main currency rivals as positive data from China and surprisingly strong domestic home loans/business confidence figures improved Australia’s economic outlook.

The Australian Dollar exchange rate was trading in the region of 0.5856 against the British Pound as of 10:20 am GMT

However, with a report published by the Australian statistics bureau showing an unexpected loss of 10,800 positions in August (following a revised decline of 11,400 the previous month) the ‘Aussie’ reversed advances during the local session.

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Economists expected the Australian economy to add 10,000 jobs last month so this result was a bit of a blow.

Crucially, the nation’s unemployment rate advanced from 5.7 per cent to a four-year high of 5.8 per cent.

The Australian Dollar to Pound Sterling (AUD/GBP) exchange rate hit a low of 0.5832

As employment has a major influence on fiscal policy this result has increased the odds of the Reserve Bank of Australia issuing an additional rate cut before the end of the year.

According to currency strategist Ray Attrill, ‘The unemployment rate would be key to determining whether the RBA does cut rates again, so today’s number reinforces our view that there will be at least one more cut in the cycle. The fall back in the Aussie is justified.’

During local trade the Australian Dollar shed almost 1 per cent against the ‘Greenback’ and slid 1.4 per cent against the Yen.

However, declines against the Pound were tempered as Sterling softened in reaction to Bank of England Governor Mark Carney’s address to Parliament.

Before the weekend additional ‘Aussie’ movement could occur in response to US developments – particularly any data which reinforces the case for the Federal Reserve tapering currency easing.

Today’s US initial jobless claims report will be of interest to the AUD/USD pairing.

Current Exchange Australian Dollar (AUD) Rates

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The Australian Dollar/US Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.9249 <

The Australian Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6958 <

The Australian Dollar/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.5856 <

The Australian Dollar/ New Zealand Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.1373 <

The US Dollar/Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.0812 >

The Euro/Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.4371 >

The Pound Sterling /Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.7075 >

The New Zealand Dollar/Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8801 <

Correct as of 10:20 am GMT

Laura Parsons

Laura Parsons is a currency analyst working in the financial sector, writing financial articles for a number of respected web-based publications.